Agreement paving way for Ord River hydro-electricity power station

26/10/94

Hydro-electricity will be lighting Western Australia's far North within 18 months.

Premier Richard Court and Resources Development Minister Colin Barnett today signed a State Agreement which paved the way for a hydro-electricity power station to be built on the Ord River main dam to supply power to the growing Kununurra and Wyndham regions, as well as Argyle Diamond Mine and future Kimberley developments.

Mr Court said the $70 million project was yet another exciting development for the State and a major achievement in the wider use of renewable energy in Western Australia.

"The Ord River region is a vast resource which is not only rapidly developing as a rich agricultural region but also as a growing mining hub," the Premier said.

"This project is the realisation of a vision which was born 30 years ago to provide hydro power in the Ord and will deliver cheap, clean and efficient energy to the growing top-end of our State."

The State Agreement follows months of planning and the landmark signing of power purchase agreements with Argyle Diamond Mine and the State Energy Commission of WA (SECWA), as well as a commitment by the Water Authority of WA (WAWA) to supply water and allow land to be subleased for the project.

Mr Court said the project involved joint venture partners Ord Hydro Consortium - comprising Pacific Hydro Limited, ABN AMRO Australia and Sinclair Knight Merz - to build a 30-megawatt hydro-electric power station on the Lake Argyle Dam to replace existing diesel power stations and supply power to Argyle Diamond Mine and more than 6,000 people in the region.

"Ord hydro will become the State's largest application of renewable energy and will underscore this Government's commitment towards promoting alternate energy sources as a means of power supply," he said.

Resources Development Minister Colin Barnett said work would begin by the end of this year to build the 30-megawatt power station, with the first power due to be supplied by early 1996. The project will have a peak construction work force of 70.

The Minister said the rapid growth of the Kununurra region meant there was an increasing need for extra power.

Two 15-megawatt power units would be built at the base of the dam wall, converting into electricity the energy of the water being discharged from Lake Argyle. Transmission lines had been planned to Kununurra and to the Argyle Diamond Mine. SECWA would provide a transmission line from Kununurra to Wyndham. 

A proposed route for the transmission line was being finalised in consultation with local environmental and Aboriginal heritage groups.

The Minister said that SECWA had long been studying ways to reduce the operating costs of the Kununurra power station, as well as to provide alternative power supplies for Wyndham.  SECWA had proposed a hydro-electric scheme for the smaller diversion dam on the Ord River but recently shelved such plans in favour of the larger private proposal.

As well as being a major showcase for renewable energy, the project would have minimal environmental impact and would replace three existing diesel power stations which would only be used as a back-up power source.

Ord hydro would also result in a significant reduction - about 60 million litres a year - in the amount of fuel oil burnt for power generation in the East Kimberley.  This represented a saving of $20 million in fuel costs.

"This project also serves to highlight how the private sector, with the support and co-operation of Government, can develop and ultimately operate a private generation facility," Mr Barnett said.

He said the Government and SECWA would continue to promote the wider use of renewable energy and would continue research and testing to developing further projects for the State.